Surgical methods are being developed to ablate tissue by inserting an optical fiber catheter into a body lumen and passing laser light through the fiber optics onto the surgical site. Laser catheters employing optical fibers to deliver laser radiation to ablate tissue are coupled to pulsed Xe:Cl excimer or other suitably powered lasers. However, there are many problems associated with using excimer lasers with a wavelength of 308 nm, for example. Noxious gases used with excimer lasers must be vented. The laser is extremely large and bulky and generates an excessive amount of electrical noise that may affect other hospital equipment. As a consequence, excimer lasers require heavy shielding. Moreover, the laser beam quality is so poor that optical processing of the beam is difficult. Also, the excimer laser generates light in the UV-B range resulting in the potential for mutagenicity of the irradiated tissue. The use of such a system at a wavelength of 308 nm is known to cause cataracts. In view of the dangers associated with excimer lasers and other problems associated with other existing medical lasers, a need exists for the development of a surgical laser system more suitable for a hospital environment, that will provide a radiation source suitable for tissue ablation and provide a more convenient and reliable laser source for a variety of medical applications.